K. Manohar Pai v. Central Board of Secondary Education and Chinmaya Vidyalaya

## **IN THE HIGH COURT OF KERALA AT ERNAKULAM** ## **PRESENT** **THE HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE P.V.KUNHIKRISHNAN TUESDAY, THE 28[TH] DAY OF SEPTEMBER 2021 / 6TH ASWINA, 1943** **WP(C) NO. 14500 OF 2021** ## **PETITIONER:** K.MANOHAR PAI AGED 61 YEARS S/O. K. PURUSHOTHAM PAI, NEAR S.S. KALA MANDIR, MELANGOTE, BALLA VILLAGE, HOSDURG TALUK, KASARAGOD, REPRESENTING HER MINOR DAUGHTER ANNAPOORNA PAI K. BY ADVS. A.ARUNKUMAR S.SHYAM KUMAR ## **RESPONDENTS:** 1 THE CENTRAL BOARD OF SECONDARY EDUCATION REPRESENTED BY ITS REGIONAL OFFICER, 2ND FLOOR, BLOCKB, LIC DIVISIONAL OFFICE CAMPUS, PATTOM, THIRUVANANTHAPURAM-695 004 2 CHINMAYA VIDYALAYA, ATHIYAMBOOR, KANHANGAD, KASARAGOD-671 315, REPRESENTED BY ITS PRINCIPAL. BY ADV NIRMAL.S, SC THIS WRIT PETITION (CIVIL) HAVING COME UP FOR ADMISSION ON 28.09.2021, THE COURT ON THE SAME DAY DELIVERED THE FOLLOWING: WP(C)NO.14500/2021 2 ## **P.V.KUNHIKRISHNAN, J** **--------------------------------------** ## **W.P.(C)No.14500 of 2021** **-------------------------------------Dated this the 28[th] day of September 2021** ## **JUDGMENT** ## **The above writ petition is filed with** ## **following prayers:** _“i) issue a writ of mandamus or any other writ, order or direction to the 1[st] respondent to consider and pass orders on Exhibit P3 and P4 within a period of one month;_ _ii) issue a writ of mandamus or any other writ, order or direction to the respondents to carry out corrections in the entries of parents' names of the petitioner, in the school records and Exhibit P2 in tune with the Exhibit P1;_ _iii) to declare that the petitioner's daughter is entitled to get the correction of the parent's name entered in the school records including the Secondary School Certificate, based on the entries in the Exhibit P1;_ _iv) issue any other writ order or direction as this Hon'ble court may deem fit in the facts and circumstances of the case.”_ ## **2. The petitioner is aggrieved by the delay** **on the part of the 1[st] respondent in considering and passing orders on the application filed by the** WP(C)NO.14500/2021 3 **petitioner for effecting corrections in the entry of parents name in the Secondary School Examination certificate issued by the 1[st] respondent. The petitioner and his wife adopted a minor girl namely Annapoorna Pai. K following Hindu Adoption and Maintenance Act. Ext.P1 is the document showing the adoption. Thereafter the petitioner and his wife are the parents of the minor girl 'Annapoorna Pai. K'. The daughter of the petitioner completed her class X from the 2[nd] respondent school. While forwarding the parents details of the petitioner's daughter to the 1[st] respondent, the 2[nd] respondent erroneously entered the name of the petitioner at the place of mother's name and the petitioner's wife's name at the place of father's name. The said mistake occurred because of a clerical mistake on the part of the 2[nd] respondent. Ext.P2 is the Secondary School Examination certificate. The petitioner approached the 2[nd] respondent with an application requesting the 2[nd] respondent to effect changes to** WP(C)NO.14500/2021 4 **the entries with regard to the names of parents, in par with Ext.P1. It is the case of the petitioner that the petitioner complied with the mandates made in Rule 69.1(ii) of the CBSE bye-law relating to the correction and change in the name. The application made by the petitioner was forwarded by the 2[nd] respondent to the 1[st] respondent. Exts.P3 and P4 are the application and the covering letter of the 2[nd] respondent. The grievance of the petitioner is that the same is not considered by the 1[st] respondent. Hence, this writ petition is filed.** **3. Heard the learned counsel for the petitioner and the learned Standing counsel for the 1[st] respondent.** **4. The learned counsel for the petitioner reiterated his contentions in the writ petition. The learned counsel takes me through Ext.P4 letter submitted by the 2[nd] respondent to the 1[st] respondent, in which it is stated that there is a clerical mistake from the side of the school and** WP(C)NO.14500/2021 5 **requested the 1[st] respondent to rectify the clerical error. The learned counsel submitted that there will be irreparable loss and difficulties to the petitioner's daughter, if the correction is not carried out.** **5. The learned Standing counsel for the 1[st] respondent opposed the same. The learned Standing counsel takes me through paragraph Nos.4 and 5 of the statement filed in this case on 17.09.2021 and submitted that certain additional documents are necessary in this case because the petitioner's daughter is an adopted child.** **6. I considered the contentions of the petitioner and the 1[st] respondent. It will be better to extract the contents in Ext.P4 letter of** ## **the 2[nd] respondent to the 1[st] respondent.** _“It is brought to the kind attention of the Board that there is a clerical error in the mark sheet of our X standard student Miss.ANNA POORNA PAI K, Roll No.24170061, School Code 75078. In place of father's name is i.e.K MANOHAR PAI, mother's name is written and in place of mother's name i.e. K VRINDA M PAI father's name is written. I kindly apologies for the clerical mistake from our side and request to rectify the clerical error_ WP(C)NO.14500/2021 6 _of Anna Poorna Pai K. Her parents name is as follows. Father's name: K MANOHAR PAI Mother's name: K VRINDA M PAI”. Your immediate action regarding this will be highly appreciated.”[Emphasis supplied]_ **7. In the above letter it is clearly stated that it is a clerical mistake on the part of the 2[nd] respondent school and that is why the error in the certificate occurred. In the certificate, father's name is written in place of mother's name and mother's name is written in place of father's name. In such circumstances, the school itself conceded that it is a mistake on their part and they requested the 1[st] respondent to rectify the mistake. It is true that the 1[st] respondent opposed the same and filed a statement. It will be better to extract the relevant portion of the statement filed by the 1[st] respondent.** _“3. The petitioner herein had sought for change in the candidate's father's name from_ _**K Vrindha M Pai** to_ _**K Manohar Pai** and mother's name from_ _**K Manohar Pai** to_ _**K Vrindha M Pai** . The petitioner had passed secondary examination in the year 2020 from the 2[nd] respondent school._ WP(C)NO.14500/2021 7 _4. This is a case of adoption of a child and incorporation of adoptive parent's names in school records and CBSE records of the candidate. In this case adoption was done and names of adoptive parents were entered in school and CBSE records on the basis of an apparently registered adoption deed only, even when the birth certificate contained the names of biological parents only._ _5. It submitted that the school was given direction to produce following documents to validate the adoption deed:_ _i) A formal order from the competent Court of Law (which had jurisdiction over adoptionrelated matters) for considering the adoption deed as valid. The order should also incorporate necessary direction to registrar of births and deaths of the Municipal Corporation for performing an amendment in the birth records of the candidate by replacing the biological parents names with that of adoptive parents._ _ii) Based on adoption deed and the Court Order, the candidate has to further obtain a revised Birth Certificate from Municipal Corporation with updated parents names.”_ ## **8. According to me, since it is a mistake** **committed by the school authorities, we need not go through the other contentions raised by the 1[st] respondent. There is no dispute that, the name of father and mother are interchanged in Ext.P2 certificate. It is admitted by the school** WP(C)NO.14500/2021 8 **authorities that, it is a mistake committed by them. After hearing both sides, I think this writ petition can be disposed in the light of the decision of the Apex Court in** _**Jigya Yadav v. Central Board of Secondary Education [2021 (3) KLT 711].**_ **Therefore, this writ petition is disposed in the following manner:** **i) The petitioner shall file an affidavit also referring to the facts and disclosing the same. The petitioner shall also indemnify C.B.S.E. against any loss that may be caused to any third party by the correction.** **ii) The petitioner shall surrender the original certificate sought to be corrected, if not already surrendered.** **iii) The affidavit and other documents submitted by the petitioner before the 2[nd] respondent will be forwarded by the 2[nd] respondent to the 1[st] respondent. On receipt of the additional documents, the 1[st] respondent shall** WP(C)NO.14500/2021 9 **inform the petitioner by email (the petitioner will furnish the email details), the** **administrative expenses necessary for processing the application and the petitioner shall remit the same forthwith.** **iv) Thereafter the 1[st] respondent shall process the application and shall pass appropriate orders in the light of paragraphs 170 and 171 of the judgment of the Apex Court in** _**Jigya Yadav v. Central Board of Secondary Education [2021 (3) KLT 711]**_ **as expeditiously as possible, at any rate, within four weeks from the date of receipt of the documents from the 2[nd] respondent.** **v) The 1[st] respondent will consider the admission of the 2[nd] respondent school in Ext.P4 that, it is a mistake on their part, while considering the correction application.** ## **Sd/-** ## **P.V.KUNHIKRISHNAN JUDGE** **DM** WP(C)NO.14500/2021 10 ## **APPENDIX OF WP(C) 14500/2021** PETITIONER EXHIBITS EXHIBIT P1 - A TRUE COPY OF REGISTERED DOCUMENT NO. 90/IV/04. - EXHIBIT P2 A TRUE COPY OF THE SECONDARY SCHOOL EXAMINATION (CLASS X), 2020 CERTIFICATE OF PETITIONER'S DAUGHTER. - EXHIBIT P3 A TRUE COPY OF THE REQUEST OF THE PETITIONER BEFORE THE 1ST RESPONDENT DATED 17.07.2020. - EXHIBIT P4 A TRUE COPY OF THE REQUEST FORWARDED BY THE 2ND RESPONDENT BEFORE THE 1ST RESPONDENT DATED 17.07.2020. - EXHIBIT P5 A TRUE COPY OF THE INCOME CERTIFICATE DATED 28.07.2020 ISSUED FROM THE VILLAGE OFFICE BELLA. - EXHIBIT P6 A TRUE COPY OF THE CONDUCT CERTIFICATE ISSUED BY THE 2ND RESPONDENT DATED 03.08.2020. - EXHIBIT P7 A TRUE COPY OF THE NATIVITY CERTIFICATE DATED 06.08.2020 ISSUED FROM THE VILLAGE OFFICE BELLA. - EXHIBIT P8 A TRUE COPY OF THE ADHAR CARD ISSUED BY THE GOVERNMENT OF INDIA TO THE DAUGHTER OF THE PETITIONER. - EXHIBIT P9 A TRUE COPY OF THE JUDGMENT 03.10.2016 IN W.P.C NO. 19018/2015. RESPONDENTS EXHIBITS : NIL //TRUE COPY// PA TO JUDGE